HEY GUYS LET'S ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS
Brief introduction before I start. I'm Roukanken, and I've been around on MotK for several years now. I've written a lot of smaller stories in that time but the one I'm probably best known for is
Dolphin Rider Koishi, a long-running magical girl/action hybrid that finally spiraled to a close about nine months ago. In terms of more recent work I recently put out a small comedy visual novel called
In Miko We Trust, where I took a silly mental image of Miko being the president of the USA and I ran with it.
Anyway, enough introduction. To the questions!
What got you into writing fiction?
A potent combination of English class and a friend introducing me to FF.net. I started with awful crack fiction and worked my way up from there. In terms of making it something I seriously pursued, that came a few years later when people started telling me I had some talent with the art. Knowing you've put so much work into something makes it a lot more rewarding when people compliment you for it.
What sources outside of Touhou do you draw inspiration from?
Sadly I don't read as much as I used to (I'm way too picky with my literature), so a lot of my inspiration comes from video games and television. DRK, for example, has extremely large and obvious inspirations from the Persona series, with some pinches of Sailor Moon for a little zest.
For a broader answer, inspiration is something you should try to find in everything. Rather than getting your ideas explicitly from books or even from traditional media, you should look for ideas from pretty much everything you do. Keep an open mind and don't be afraid an idea is stupid before you've thought it out. As I'll explain with DRK later, sometimes it's even a good idea to get inspiration from yourself!
Which Touhou character is your favorite to write? The most difficult write?
My favourite character to write is probably Patchouli. Whenever she's involved, it gives me a reason to come up with scathing, painful wit, and that's always great fun for me to write. She's got a fun personality too, ranging from bored disinterest to slightly-neurotic obsession depending on the day of the week.
Hardest character to write, hands down, is Koishi. It says a lot that I made the DRK version of Koishi nothing like the original very deliberately. My early attempts in stories like Pure Lotus of the Sunken Stars pretty much reduced her to a one-dimensional LOL I'M SO RANDOM character. I'm really unhappy with that portrayal but after stuff like SoPM and Hopeless Masquerade I've got no real idea how I'm supposed to write her. :V
Out of all the stories you've written (Touhou-related or not), which one is your favorite?
DRK. Hands down. They say when you're writing you're putting a little bit of yourself in the story, and in DRK's case that's definitely true. This probably sounds quite corny, but writing Koishi maturing and getting over her problems made it a lot easier for me to grow as well. It even shows in the writing itself - I'm not a fan of the early arcs looking back on them, too much angst and too little action, but again the story 'grows up' as it progresses. Based on the amount of time that went into it, the response it's received, and my general enjoyment of the concept itself, it's definitely my favourite piece I've ever written.
Outside of Touhou fiction, what other works have you written fiction for?
I got my start, back when I was 13, writing fanfiction for Tales of Symphonia.
It has not survived the test of time. (Spoilers for ToS, I suppose?) I dabbled in other fandoms like Phoenix Wright briefly, but it wasn't until I got into Touhou that I really found some momentum.
What do you find to be the most rewarding aspect of writing? The most challenging?
Writing for me is a system of having an image in your head, and trying to turn that image into words for other people to understand. The most rewarding feeling I can get is that sensation I've done the image justice, that I've written something that'll make a reader think of the same thing I am.
The hardest part is getting through a slump. Writing in general is a journey of ups and downs - sometimes you're raring to get something written, but other times you'd rather set fire to the keyboard than face a blank page. You need to know yourself pretty well to keep a coherent schedule...which is why DRK took three years to finish. :V
If there is one aspect of your writing you would want to improve, what is it?
I feel like my descriptions are awfully vague. Looking at published work I see people come up with beautiful metaphors and mental images that I can't really replicate. A lot of this might be down to redrafting, but in general I wish I was a bit quicker on the button when it comes to imagery.
When writing Touhou fiction, how do you usually approach official canon material? Do you build on top of it; do you go around it; or do you try and stay within it as much as possible? Something else?
It depends on the nature of the story. If it's a short or a comedy piece I might be willing to waive one or two materials in order to make things work. (This is why so many of my characters can get their hands on wetsuits and dive gear in a universe where they probably don't even exist. :V)
If it's more serious and long-running, I'll try my best to stick with canonical interpretations above all else. Unfortunately because of this there are a lot of characters I'm unlikely to touch. For example I've really taken a shine to Miko recently, but the rest of her crew have been made more and more reprehensible since SoPM. Futo's appearance in IMWT basically depended on me turning her entirely into a caricature rather than something realistic, since the 'real' Futo is a character I don't care for and don't really want to write.
What are some of your favorite things to read, including but not limited to books?
And here's where I spit in the face of everything I just said!
When it comes to reading I pursue in my own time, I have a bile fascination for the terrible. Some of you may know I've done Let's Plays of
horrible, horrible VNs in my spare time. When I make an LP like that I'm aiming for two things: firstly to embrace the awfulness of the original piece, and secondly to make something entertaining out of what would otherwise be a trainwreck. It's a fine line and one I've put a lot of practice into treading with care.
What particular genres do you enjoy reading? What particular genres do you enjoy writing?
It doesn't show in my writing, but I'm a big fan of murder mysteries. I've tried a few times to write my own, but it really doesn't gel with my normal writing style, unfortunately. Maybe some day.
Do you have any big projects we can look forward to on the horizon?
I'm actually working on a novel right now! It's a project I've been dabbling in since before 2014 - no real relation to Touhou, although Jozu (an OC I use quite often) does make an appearance in it. I'm about two thirds of the way through a first draft, but progress has been kind of rocked by the fact I've moved out of the house and got myself a job. In fact, as I write this, I'm getting ready for my first day at work!
Is there a word of advice you'd like to give to aspiring fiction writers?
Don't be afraid to suck. No-one is born the next Stephen King or J.K. Rowling. The only way to get good at writing is to write. You will make mistakes; that's inevitable. But the only way to get those problems out of your writing is to make them first. A great quote I heard about this came from the comic book writer Brian Vaughan:
'Every writer has 10,000 pages of shit in them, and the only way your writing is going to be any good at all is to work hard and hit 10,001.'-----
What is it about dolphins that inspires you?
Initially it was entirely accidental. I will admit I am a fan of aquatic scenes in general and have been since I was a kid, but dolphins weren't that big a thing for me. Then I happened to have a mental image of Satori swimming with dolphins, and figured it would make a good short. In true Rou fashion it spiraled horribly out of control and then Sango happened, but by then I'd actually become quite attached to her as a character.
Dolphins are fun, and consequently fun to think about when life gets stressful. Other 'factoids' about dolphins will be willingly ignored and considered slander in my presence. >:<
What inspired you to write DRK?
I know I've said this several times already, but DRK was a happy accident. In the story I mentioned earlier (Pure Lotus of the Sunken Stars) I had Koishi as the one-dimensional maniac. However, there was a running joke where she was convinced she was a magical girl, riding Sango to victory against some evil crab king monster. The image stuck in my head and I decided I wanted to run with it, but add a touch of my personal style as well. The rest, as they say, is history.
Do you often talk to Sango in your head, even when not writing things that are about her?
Not as much as I used to. Maybe it's because DRK is over, but Sango is less of a presence in my head and more of a character. Alternatively it's because she'd have to vie for attention with every other character I've got rolling around in there. :V
What are some other sea-lifes that you enjoy?
I've been meaning to try and write a proper jellyfish youkai for a while. Maybe an eel, as well. (Yes, Iku's an oarfish, but that doesn't quite count.) More than anything though I feel like people are losing interest/patience in that sort of stuff, because I'm far more into it than anyone else. So I guess it'll have to wait for now.
Is Koishi a menace to life everywhere?
How is the work on that novel coming along?
Only youLike I said I'm in a bit of a slump with all the real life things going on. Moving out, starting work, dealing with
my loving and supportive family, and so on. I'm hoping once I get into a regular routine with work I'll be able to start writing properly again.
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Alright, let's open the forum. Fire away, ladies and
gentlemen other ladies!
